Discover Maori sacred rituals at Hamilton Gardens

Explore the history of gardens at Waikato's most visited tourist attraction.

Te Parapara GardenBy Hamilton Gardens

Te Parapara GardenBy Hamilton Gardens

Te Parapara GardenBy Hamilton Gardens

Te Parapara GardenBy Hamilton Gardens

Te Parapara GardenBy Hamilton Gardens

Te Parapara GardenBy Hamilton Gardens

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Renowned as a site of sacred rituals, the Te Parapara Garden at Hamilton Gardens is an oustanding example of pre-European life alongside Waikato River.

Before Europeans arrived the riverbanks throughout central Waikato were lined with many Maori gardens and the Te Parapara Garden site was at one time home to Haanui, a famous Ngati Wairere chief, and was particularly renowned as a site of sacred rituals associated with the harvesting of food crops.

The Te Parapara Garden project is a joint project between Nga Mana Toopu and Hamilton City Council. It extends beyond a physical development to include records of traditional knowledge, interpretive material and ceremonies all focused on the heritage and tikanga associated with the local area.

Te Parapara was originally the name of the pre-European Maori settlement in what is now the centre of Hamilton Gardens.

Te Parapara displays plants that can be used as resources as well as plants of cultural significance. The plant displays are set within a design that refers to traditional built structures as well as to the cultural aspects of gardening. The garden tells the story of the establishment of cultivated food crops in the Waikato, from the landing of the Tainui waka to the era of the expansive plantations that were described in the 1840s by European visitors. It shows how the first Polynesian arrivals to Aotearoa used the plants they found growing wild and it demonstrates the new techniques they developed for growing tropical crops in a sub-tropical climate. The garden also shows the cultural context that integrated and regulated the agronomic life of pre-European Waikato/Ngati Wairere society.

Te Parapara is divided into two realms. Te Ara Whakatauki (the path of proverbs), which lies between the Piazza and the waharoa (gateway) is the realm of the uncultivated food from the forest and grassland. The ruler of this realm is Haumia- tiketike, deity of wild food plants. Te Taupa (the garden), beyond the Waharoa, is the realm of cultivated food, ruled by Rongomatane, deity of the kumara and all cultivated food plants.

Hamilton Gardens

Hamilton Gardens is a conceptual garden based in the Waikato that explores the context, history and meaning of gardens through time, and from around the world. It is internationally recognised for its unique concept and is the Waikato region’s most popular tourist destination.

Only five minutes drive from Hamilton’s CBD, the Gardens is open 7 days a week during daylight hours and entry and parking is free. Access is off SH1, alongside Cobham Drive on the southern side of Hamilton. Mobility scooters, wheelchairs and pushchairs are available to hire and guided tours are available.